AU2009202489B2

AU2009202489B2 - A method of detecting RFID transponders and an antenna system for the same

Info

Publication number: AU2009202489B2
Application number: AU2009202489A
Authority: AU
Inventors: David Brown; Mark Tereszczak
Original assignee: Shearwell Data Ltd
Current assignee: Shearwell Data Ltd
Priority date: 2008-06-25
Filing date: 2009-06-22
Publication date: 2013-10-24
Anticipated expiration: 2029-06-22
Also published as: GB2461126B; GB0811655D0; GB2461126A; EP2146304B1; NZ577931A; ATE521042T1; EP2146304A1; AU2009202489A1

Abstract

A METHOD FOR DETECTING RFID TRANSPONDERS AND AN ANTENNA SYSTEM FOR THE SAME A method for energising and detecting RFID transponders in which a phase relationship between first and second power signals used to power first and second parts of an antenna is repeatedly switched to produce two different field patterns. 10 The regions which may allow transponders having a certain orientation to escape detection may be different for each phase relationship. By selecting the phase relationships appropriately and performing the phase switching at a rate to ensure that any transponder travelling through the antenna 15 range is exposed to each field pattern, the probability of a transponder escaping detection can be reduced. [Fig. 4)

Description

AUSTRALIA FB RICE & CO Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys Patents Act 1990 SHEARWELL DATA LIMITED COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: A method of detecting RFID transponders and an antenna system for the same The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to us:- 1A A METHOD FOR DETECTING RFID TRANSPONDERS AND AN ANTENNA SYSTEM FOR THE SAME This invention relates to antennas for transmitting 5 signals to energise microchips in transponders. For example, it may relate to methods of operating antenna systems adapted for use in identifying livestock. Antenna systems are used in a wide variety of situations. 10 They are used in security systems in high street shops or for identifying animals in slaughterhouses or markets. The idea behind these systems is the same: the antenna transmits an electromagnetic field over a certain area. Transponders (e.g. radio frequency identification (RFID) tags) containing 15 microchips are energised when their circuits lie across (i.e. at an angle to) field lines of the electromagnetic field. Energising the transponder causes it to emit a response signal. The same or another antenna can detect the response signal and identify the transponder which has entered the 20 area. In the case of shop security systems, electronic tags are attached to items of clothing. When these tags are detected by the antennas positioned at the shop exit, an alarm sounds. Similarly, cattle can be given ear tags or carry stomach boluses with transponders that are energised by 25 antennas mounted on the side of narrow passageways (races) through which they are herded. Thus the animals entering the cattle market or slaughterhouse can be identified. This is important for the control of disease. A known method of detecting RFID tags is to mount a loop 30 antenna on or in the side wall of a race such that the plane of the loop is parallel to the race. The antenna is set up as a series resonant circuit; when current flows through the antenna, an electromagnetic field is set up whose field lines extend around the edges of the antenna giving a toroidal 35 shape. When a microchip in a transponder cuts those field lines (i.e. lies across or move through them), a current is induced in it, i.e. it is energised. An alternative way of arranging the antenna is to have the plane of the loop perpendicular to the direction of the 40 race. The antenna loop is of sufficient size so that the cattle can walk through it: this is known as a portal antenna.

2 In this arrangement the field lines extend in the direction of the race. It is important in cattle identification that no animals are missed. The systems described above have the disadvantage 5 that there is a significant chance the transponder will not be energised because the microchip will be at the wrong angle. If the microchip is parallel to the field lines, i.e. it does not cut lines of different electromagnetic strength, then no current will flow in it and it will not be energised. This is 10 more of a problem with ear tags than with boluses, because the ear tags are moved around when the cattle toss their heads. A number of proposals have been made to provide an antenna which will detect a transponder whatever its orientation. GB 1599120 shows a first example, where two loop 15 antennas were used, mounted with their planes perpendicular to one another. Each loop produced its own field, nominally perpendicular to each other. However, each field also affected the other due to mutual inductance, with the result that significant 'dead zones' where there was no or only a 20 small field occurred. US 4679046 teaches an alternative method, where a loop formed as a figure of eight is surrounded by a normal loop, the two loops being coplanar. This arrangement achieved the same effect as two perpendicularly positioned antennas, but 25 still suffered from the problem of 'dead zones' due to mutual inductance between the loops. US 4679046 offered two solutions to the problem of 'dead zones': the first was to multiplex the two loops; the second was to introduce a phase shift between the currents in each loop to create a circularly 30 polarised field. The latter arrangement is complicated because finding the correct phase shift can be difficult, and the phase shift circuit requires more components, thus added expense. Multiplexing involves supplying one loop at a time with 35 power in a short cycle so that the net effect over time is a field in both directions. This solves the problem of mutual inductance, but adds further problems in terms of the complexity of the system circuit and 'lost' time as explained below. 40 As mentioned above, a further limitation of known arrangements is that they only provide antennas whose fields 3 are strong in two dimensions, i.e. the third dimension is only weakly covered; transponders aligned perpendicularly to the other fields (i.e. along their field lines) may not be detected. The solution proposed to this in US 4679046 is the 5 introduction of a third antenna, with its plane perpendicular to the other antennas such that its field lines are in the weakly covered dimension. This is undesirable because of the cost involved in adding another component, especially if it too must either be multiplexed or given a phase shift, and 10 because of the extra power required to give the system enough coverage. Enough power needs to be provided to the antennas to give their fields enough range to cover the race. In addition to the cost of providing power, the power available for antennas 15 is limited by laws governing radio frequency radiation emission. The antennas divide the power between them; therefore more antennas need more power to achieve the same range. GB 2391710 discloses an antenna which with two parts is 20 capable of providing a field with components in three dimensions, i.e. able to detect transponders at any orientation. In GB 2391710 the antenna configuration comprises a saddle-type antenna which straddles the race and a loop antenna on one side of the race with the plane of its 25 loop aligned with the direction of the race. This two part configuration is able to provide field lines of comparable strength in three dimensions. The arrangement of the two parts also provided an overall field with a very wide range of components. This means it is 30 effective for and efficient at detecting a transponder in any orientation. However, whilst this antenna configuration improved overall coverage there are still some regions within the volume enclosed by the saddle where transponders at a certain orientation may escape detection. 35 At its most general, the invention proposes switching the phase relationship between the signals used to power different parts of an antenna. The invention is based on the understanding that each phase relationship produces a 40 different field pattern. Thus, the regions which may allow transponders having a certain orientation to escape detection 4 may be different for each phase relationship. By selecting the phase relationships appropriately and performing the phase switching at a rate to ensure that any transponder travelling through the antenna range is exposed to each field pattern, 5 the probability of a transponder escaping detection can be reduced. According to the invention there may be provided a method of detecting transponders (e.g. RFID tags) moving along a detection path, the method comprising: providing first and 10 second power signals simultaneously to respective first and second parts of an antenna located on the detection path, the first and second power signals having a first phase relationship, whereby the antenna emits a first electromagnetic field for energising transponders; determining 15 if any transponders are energised by the first electromagnetic field; switching the first phase relationship to a second phase relationship, whereby the antenna emits a second electromagnetic field (i.e. different from the first electromagnetic field) for energising transponders; and 20 determining if any transponders are energised by the second electromagnetic field, wherein the first and second power signals are controlled: to be delivered to their respective antenna parts during a plurality of transmitting periods defined by a transmission protocol; and not to be delivered to 25 their respective antenna parts during one or more silent periods defined by the transmission protocol, and wherein the method includes: detecting a transition between a silent period and transmitting period, whereby switching the first phase relationship to the second phase relationship is 30 triggered by the detected transition. The method may include switching back to the first phase relationship after determining if any transponders are energised by the second electromagnetic field. The method may include repeatedly switching between the first and second 35 phase relationships. The first and second signals may be derived from the same source. The source may be an AC power source. The first phase relationship may be an "in phase" relationship, e.g. in which a phase difference of 0* exists between the first and 40 second power signals fed into their respective antenna parts. The second phase relationship may be an "out of phase" 4a relationship, e.g. in which a non-zero phase difference exists at the input to the respective antenna parts. The phase difference may be 1800. Other phase differences may be introduced. The phase difference may be implemented by 5 switching the feed direction of one of the first or second power signals. Alternatively, a phase shifting component may be included in the circuit. In selecting the phase difference, an important factor is that the region or regions of weakness, i.e. regions in which 10 transponders having a certain orientation may not be detected, 5 are different for the fields corresponding to the first and second phase relationships. For example, the regions of weakness may occupy different spatial locations for the respective fields. Alternatively or additionally the regions 5 of weakness may be for transponders with different orientations. Thus, for any given transponder orientation detection may be guaranteed because the fields corresponding to the first and second phase relationships do not share a region of weakness for the same transponder orientation at the 10 same spatial location. The switching may be achieved using conventional circuitry, e.g. flip flop switches or the like. The first and second parts may be loops mounted on the race. In one embodiment the first and second parts may be 15 side loops mounted on opposite sides of the race, with their planes parallel to the detection path. In another embodiment, the first part may be a side loop located adjacent the detection path with its plane in the longitudinal direction of the path and the second part may be a loop having 20 longitudinally extending sections adjacent both sides of the detection path joined by arch portions which traverse the detection path, i.e. a saddle-type loop such as that disclosed in GB 2391710. The longitudinally extending parts may be in the form of 25 wings on each side of the detection path with two transverse sections spanning the detection path to join corresponding parts of the wings. The wings may be formed from at least one longitudinal portion connected to one or both of the transverse sections by at least one riser portion. 30 The wings may be U-shaped. The longitudinal portion may be the base of the U, and the riser portion being the arms. The riser portions may extend downwards relative to the detection path, and said transverse sections may extend under said detection path. Alternatively, the U may be a smooth 35 curve. The detection path may be defined by a passageway for animals, and the second part may be wrapped over the passageway with the longitudinally extending portions located in or adjacent side walls of said passageway. 40 The first and second parts are preferably coils of wire, preferably wound in opposing directions. In other words, the 6 longitudinally extending part of the second antenna part adjacent the side loop is wound in the opposite direction to the bottom of the side loop. An advantage of the antenna arrangement proposed in GB 5 2391710 is that the coverage of the field associated with each phase relationship may be high, i.e. the regions of weakness in each field are already limited. Accordingly, switching between phase relationships may not introduce a risk of missed detection. This is in contrast with the multiplexing 10 technique known in the art, where the field of each antenna has significant regions of weakness ("dead zones"). Preferably, the loops comprise a single cable wound in the shape of the loop several times. Preferably, a low resistance wire is used. More preferably, twin core cable is 15 used. When connected to an AC power source, each loop may form part of a series resonant circuit, whereby the transmitted signal is produced when the current moves through the coils making up the antenna. The antenna may be attached to a tuning module which 20 tunes the capacitance and/or inductance of the circuit so that its resonant frequency matches the frequency of the current from the power source. The connecting wires are preferably coaxial cables. Coaxial cables have minimal field emission; it is desirable in the antenna system to concentrate the field 25 to the loops - the connecting wires should not lose power by emitting unnecessary fields. A tuning module can be used to adjust the values of capacitance and/or inductance to compensate for the capacitance and inductance present in the wires connecting the power source to the antenna. As with any 30 arrangement where two field producing coils are placed in proximity to each other, the fields are affected by mutual inductance between the coils. The tuning module may have two configurations, each configuration corresponding to one of the phase relationships. 35 This may be needed if a different impedance adjustment is needed to achieve resonance in the circuit configurations corresponding to each phase relationship. One of the configurations may comprise an auto tuning circuit. The other configuration or configurations may be preset as impedance 40 adjustments relative to the auto tuned configuration. According, in use the antenna may be arranged to adopt the same configuration (i.e. the same phase relationship) every time it starts up, whereby the auto tuning circuit is consistently used for the same phase relationship. The tuning module may switch configurations when the 5 first and second power signals switch phase relationships. Two transmission protocols are known: full duplex (FDX) and half duplex (HDX). In the FDX protocol, the response from the transponder is sent whilst continuously receiving the interrogating RF energy. The reply transmission from the FDX 10 transponder occurs at a different frequency from the interrogating energy so that the reader can recognise that a response is being sent. In the HDX protocol, the response from the transponder is sent in a window where no interrogating RF field is present, and the reader is listening 15 for a response. The interrogating field for a HDX transponder is therefore intermittent; the periods where the field is present energise the transponder, which then waits for a silent period to send its response. An antenna can be constructed to interrogate and read both HDX and FDX 20 transponders. International standard ISO 11785:1996(E) describes one example of the technical attributes of tags and tag readers of the above type used for the radio-frequency identification of animals. Fig. 1 shows relative timing of the transmit and 25 silent (listening) periods for an antenna that can identify both HDX and FDX transponders. Fig. 1 shows the standard format of a cyclic electric field emitted by a transmitter arranged to energise a RFID tag so that it may be detected. Fig. 1 shows a plurality of 30 cycles 14, each of which have a transmitting phase 10, where an electric field is generated by the transmitter, and a silent phase 12, where no electric field is generated. The standard format shown in Fig. 1 occurs when no transponders are detected by the reader: the transmitting phase 10 lasts 35 for 50ms, and the silent phase lasts for 3ms. FDX transponders may be detected in the transmitting phase 10. Sometimes, all the information from the FDX tag cannot be completely sent within the 50ms period, e.g. because the tag only started transmitting late in the period or 40 because it only entered the field late in the period. In this case, i.e. when the reader has not validated a FDX response, 8 the transmitter is arranged to extend the transmitting phase 10. The phase is extended for long enough to allow the information from the FDX tag to be completely read or to a maximum of 100ms, to avoid a damaged tag from blocking the 5 system. This extension is illustrated in Fig. 2. The presence of a HDX tag in the field can be detected within the 3ms silent phase 12. If a HDX tag is present, the duration of the silent phase is then extended to 20ms to allow the information from the HDX tag to be read. When no HDX tag 10 is detected, the silent phase 12 lasts for only 3ms. This maximises the fraction of time that the field is transmitted, which both maximises the time for detecting FDX tags and for energising HDX tags. Fig. 3 shows a cycle where both phases are extended 15 because an FDX tag and a HDX tag are detected. The maximum cycle duration is 120ms because the phase extensions are limited so that the transmitting phase is not longer than 100ms and the silent phase is not longer than 20ms in operation. 20 The method of the invention may use a transition between a silent period and transmitting period as a trigger for switching between the phase relationships. For example, the rising edge of a transmit pulse may be arranged to trigger the switching between phase relationships. Accordingly, the 25 antenna may be arranged to alternate its FDX and HDX cycles between the first and second phase relationships. Low frequency (e.g. RF) signals are preferably used in the detection of transponders, but the antenna system described herein would work equally well at all frequencies. 30 Low frequencies are preferred because they travel through walls and animal tissue more easily. This is well-known. According to the invention there may be provided a transponder reader system for detecting transponders moving along a detection path, the system comprising: an antenna 35 having a first part and a second part mounted on the detection path and arranged to receive a first power signal and a second power signal respectively, for emitting an electromagnetic field for energising transponders on the detection path, a phase switching device connected to the antenna and arranged 40 to switch a phase relationship between the first and second power signals between a first phase relationship and a second 8a phase relationship, each phase relationship corresponding to a different electromagnetic field configuration emitted by the antenna; an AC power source arranged to generate the first and second power signals; and a detection device arranged to 5 determine if any transponders are energised by the electromagnetic field emitted by the antenna; wherein the system comprises a controller arranged to control the system to: deliver the first and second power signals to their respective antenna parts during a plurality of transmitting 10 periods defined by a transmission protocol, and not deliver the first and second power signals to their respective antenna parts during a one or more silent periods defined by the transmission protocol, wherein the controller includes a trigger unit arranged to detect a transition between a silent 15 period and transmitting period, and the phase switching device is arranged to switch between the first phase relationship and the second phase relationship based on a signal from the trigger unit. Other aspects of the invention may include an antenna 20 system arranged to exhibit the functionality outlined above, optionally combined with one or more of corresponding tuning module, power source, transponder reader system. The detection method may be expressed as a method of monitoring livestock, for example, and the antenna system may be 25 correspondingly adapted for mounting on/over the barriers of a livestock passage or race.

9 Examples of the invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 shows the standard format of a cyclic electric field emitted by a transmitter and is described above; 5 Fig. 2 shows an extended transmitting phase of the electric field shown in Fig. 1, and is also described above; Fig. 3 shows an extended transmitting phase and an extended silent phase of the electric field shown in Fig. 1, and is also described above; 10 Fig. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram for an antenna system according to the invention; Figs. 5(a) and 5(b) show field lines for an electromagnetic field emitted by adjacent loop antennas having a first and second phase relationship respectively. 15 Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an antenna system 20 that is an embodiment of the invention. The system comprises an AC power source 22 connected with an antenna 24 to form a series resonant circuit. The antenna 24 has two parts: a side 20 loop 34, which in this embodiment has an oblong shape, and a saddle-type loop 36. The saddle-type loop 36 has two arches connected by elongate arms which run parallel to the plane of the side loop 34. The arches of the saddle-type loop 36 are arranged to bridge a race (not shown) for guiding livestock. 25 The side loop 34 is arranged to be mounted along one side of the race. Each part of the antenna 24 is connected in parallel with the power source 22 via IN and OUT connections respectively. The power source may be incorporated into a reader 23, 30 e.g. an SDL130 race reader manufactured by Shearwell Data Limited. The power source 22 may be controlled by a controller 32, which may for example include a central processing unit CPU, microprocessor or the like. The signal emitted by the power source 22 can be switched on and off e.g. 35 in accordance with the transmit and silent phases of the protocol discussed above with reference to Figs. 1 to 3. In this embodiment, the antenna may act as both a means of energising transponders and also as a receiver (reader). Signals picked up by the antenna are detected using couplers 40 28, 30. The coupled signals are feed to the controller 32 for 10 processing. The couplers are not necessary for antennas whose sole function is to energise transponders. The power source 22 is connected to a tuning module 26 which has a variable impedance (e.g. a variable capacitance) 5 which can be arranged to compensate for inductance and/or capacitance in other circuit components to achieve resonance. When current flows through the antenna (e.g. at resonance), an electromagnetic field is produced. The reader 23 may include auto tune components (not shown) for fine tuning the 10 compensation achieved by the tuning module 26. According to the invention, the antenna system is capable of switching a phase relationship between signals received by first and second parts of an antenna. In this embodiment the first and second parts of the antenna 24 are the side loop 34 15 and saddle-type loop 36 respectively. Each of these loops is arranged to receive a signal derived from the same source, i.e. a signal from power source 22. In this embodiment the phase switching is achieved by a switch configuration that can swap the IN and OUT connections of the saddle-type loop 36 to 20 the power source 22. The switch configuration comprising a first switch 38 arranged to selectively connect the signal from the power source to the IN or OUT connection of the loop 36, and a second switch 40 arranged to selectively connect either the IN or OUT connection of the loop 36 to the return 25 path of the power source. The first and second switches are respectively controlled by input signals from a trigger unit 42. The trigger unit may be incorporated into the reader 23, e.g. as part of the controller 32, or it may be a stand alone unit. The switches 30 may be configured to switch simultaneously so that there is always a complete circuit formed through the saddle-type loop 36. The trigger unit 42 is also connected to an indicator 44 arranged to show the status of the system, e.g. when a phase switch has taken place. 35 The trigger unit 42 responds to trigger signals 45, 46. In a preferred embodiment, the trigger signals 45, 46 are derived from the output of power source 22. Referring to Fig. 1, each transmit phase 10 begins with a rising edge 16. Trigger signals 45, 46 may be derived from the rising edge 16 40 so that it is used as a trigger for the switching operation. Accordingly each cycle 14 has a different phase relationship 11 from the previous cycle. In other words, the system may be automatically arranged to alternate FDX and HDX energising and detection according to a first and second phase conditions. This scheme ensures that the antenna system maintains its 5 phase condition for long enough to enable FDX and HDX transponders in an orientation that is energised by that phase condition to be detected. The phase switching is thus synchronised with the power source's transmit cycle. Furthermore, by switching the phase relationship in such 10 a regular fashion, a transponder associated with an animal will face interrogation from both field in the time it takes for the animal to pass the antenna. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 4, the phase change in the signals received by the side loop 34 and saddle-type 15 loop 36 caused by operating the switches 38, 40 is 180*. The size of the phase change may not critical to the invention; other phase changes may achieve the same effect. The effect of the phase change is to change the weak regions of the antenna in an attempt to guarantee detection of transponders 20 in any orientation. When side loop 34 and saddle-type loop 36 receive a signal in phase (bearing in mind that they may be wound in opposite directions) the field emitted has a weak region at the side of the race opposite the side loop 34 for transponders oriented across the race (i.e. perpendicularly to 25 the direction of a detection path along the race). The aim of the phase switch is therefore to achieve a field which does not have this weakness and preferably is capable of guaranteeing detection of transponders with the cross-wise orientation. In the illustrated embodiment, when the side 30 loop 34 and saddle-type loop 36 receive a signal that is 180* out of phase the field emitted has a weak region approximately through the centre of the saddle for transponders oriented along the race (in the direction of the detection path). In the "in phase" situation a transponder having this orientation 35 is guaranteed to be detected because of the configuration of the field lines. According having a weak region for this orientation in the "out of phase" situation is not a disadvantage. Moreover, in the "out of phase" situation the field in the region that corresponds to the weak region in the 40 "in phase" situation is capable (in fact guaranteed) to detect transponders oriented across the race. So a transponder 12 exposed to a pair of cycles having the first and second phase relationship is guaranteed to be detected. A further advantage associated with the present embodiment is that the weak regions are already very limited 5 in each field. For example, in the "in phase" situation only transponders oriented across the race and located in the weak region risk not being detected. All other orientations are detectable everywhere. Likewise, in the "out of phase" situation only transponders oriented along the race and 10 located in the weak region risk not be detected. Thus, the invention is concerned with reducing what is already a small risk of missing a transponder. The impedance adjustment required to achieve resonance for one phase relationship may not be the same for other phase 15 relationships. In this case an additional adjustable impedance 27 may be switched in using switch 47 simultaneously with the change of phase relationship. The impedances of the tuning module 26 and the additional impedance adjustment 27 may be preset, i.e. determined before use. In the illustrated 20 embodiment additional capacitance needs to be switched to achieve resonance in the in phase situation. The system is therefore arranged to adopt the out of phase configuration (illustrated in Fig. 4) at start up, e.g. to permit the auto tuning components to fine tune the tuning module 26. 25 The additional adjustable impedance 27 may be a relative impedance (preferably a capacitance) adjustment, i.e. may be a fixed (e.g. preset) impedance that is switched into the impedance of the tuning module 26 (as fine tuned by the auto tuning components if present). The advantage of this 30 arrangement is that circuit is adaptable to different conditions. Figs. 5(a) and 5(b) are illustrations of the principles of the invention with another antenna configuration. In this case the antenna comprises two side loops 50, 52 (seen in plan 35 view in Figs. 5(a) and 6(b)) which are mounted on either side of a race with their planes parallel to each other and aligned with the detection path 48 (direction of the race). In Fig. 5(a) the signals received by the loops via feed lines 54 and 56 are in phase. The fields emitted at resonance 40 resemble toroids around each loop, which merge (complement) each other in the centre of the race. The field lines in the 13 centre zone 58 all lie across the race. This means that a transponder aligned with the race (as indicated by blocks 59) is guaranteed to be detected because it cuts through these field lines. However, it also means that a transponder lying 5 across the race in centre zone 58 will be missed because its circuit will cut through no field lines. Accordingly the phase change of the invention needs to change the field so that at least the centre zone is able to detect transponders which lie across the race. Fig. 5(b) shows one solution, 10 which corresponds to the signals received by the loops via feed lines 54 and 56 being 180* out of phase. Here it can be seen that there are field lines aligned with the detection path 48 in the centre zone. A transponder 60 aligned across the race will cut through these lines and hence be energised.

Claims

1. A method of detecting transponders moving along a detection path, the method comprising: 5 providing first and second power signals simultaneously to respective first and second parts of an antenna located on the detection path, the first and second power signals having a first phase relationship, whereby the antenna emits a first electromagnetic field for energising transponders; 10 determining if any transponders are energised by the first electromagnetic field; switching the first phase relationship to a second phase relationship, whereby the antenna emits a second electromagnetic field for energising transponders; and 15 determining if any transponders are energised by the second electromagnetic field, wherein the first and second power signals are controlled: to be delivered to their respective antenna parts 20 during a plurality of transmitting periods defined by a transmission protocol; and not to be delivered to their respective antenna parts during one or more silent periods defined by the transmission protocol, and 25 wherein the method includes: detecting a transition between a silent period and transmitting period, whereby switching the first phase relationship to the second phase relationship is triggered by the detected transition. 30

2. A method according to claim 1 including switching back to the first phase relationship after determining if any transponders are energised by the second electromagnetic field. 35

3. A method according to claim 1 including repeatedly switching between the first and second phase relationships.

4. A method according to any one of the preceding 40 claims, wherein the first phase relationship corresponds to an in phase relationship between the first and second power 15 signals provided to the first and second antenna parts, and the second phase relationship corresponds to an out of phase relationship between the first and second power signals provided to the first and second antenna parts. 5

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the in phase relationship is a phase difference of 0Q between the first and second power signals at the input to their respective antenna parts, and the second phase relationship is a non-zero phase 10 difference between the first and second power signals at the input to the respective antenna parts.

6. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein switching the first phase relationship to the 15 second phase relationship comprises reversing the feed direction of one of the first or second power signals.

7. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein providing the first and second power signals 20 includes tuning the impedance of a circuit including an AC power source arranged to generate the first and second power signals and the first and second antenna parts so that the circuit's resonant frequency matches the frequency of the current from the power source when the first and second power 25 signals have the first phase relationship.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein switching the first phase relationship to the second phase relationship including retuning the impedance of the circuit so that the 30 circuit's resonant frequency matches the frequency of the current from the power source when the first and second power signals have the second phase relationship.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein retuning the 35 impedance of the circuit comprises connecting a preset impedance into the circuit.

10. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein a detection cycle of the transmission protocol comprises a 40 consecutive transmitting period and silent period, and wherein the method includes alternating the detection cycles between 16 the first phase relationship and the second phase relationship.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the duration of 5 each transmitting period and/or silent period is extendible.

12. A method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the rising edge of a transmit pulse sent to the first and second parts of the antenna is used to trigger switching between the first and 10 second phase relationships.

13. A transponder reader system for detecting transponders moving along a detection path, the system comprising: 15 an antenna having a first part and a second part mounted on the detection path and arranged to receive a first power signal and a second power signal respectively, for emitting an electromagnetic field for energising transponders on the detection path, 20 a phase switching device connected to the antenna and arranged to switch a phase relationship between the first and second power signals between a first phase relationship and a second phase relationship, each phase relationship corresponding to a different electromagnetic field 25 configuration emitted by the antenna; an AC power source arranged to generate the first and second power signals; and a detection device arranged to determine if any transponders are energised by the electromagnetic field 30 emitted by the antenna; wherein the system comprises a controller arranged to control the system to: deliver the first and second power signals to their respective antenna parts during a plurality of transmitting 35 periods defined by a transmission protocol, and not deliver the first and second power signals to their respective antenna parts during a one or more silent periods defined by the transmission protocol, wherein the controller includes a trigger unit arranged 40 to detect a transition between a silent period and transmitting period, and 17 the phase switching device is arranged to switch between the first phase relationship and the second phase relationship based on a signal from the trigger unit. 5

14. A transponder reader according to claim 13 including a tuning module arranged to tune the impedance of a circuit including the AC power source and the first and second antenna parts so that the circuit's resonant frequency matches the frequency of the current from the power source. 10

15. A transponder reader according to claim 14, wherein the tuning module is switchable between two configurations, each configuration corresponding to one of the phase relationships between the first and second power signals. 15

16. A method of detecting transponders substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying Fig. 4 and Fig. 5. 20

17. A transponder reader system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying Fig. 4 and Fig. 5.